Stories from RhyDin & The Rings

All cast and crew members of the Shanachie Theater are invited to attend a holiday party on Sunday, January 2nd, from 12-4 pm at the theater.

Bring a guest, spouse, or significant other. Children are also welcome to attend.

Refreshments will be served, and there will be crafts and games for the kids.

This is our way of thanking everyone for being part of our theater family, so please come celebrate the season with all of us at the Shanachie.


((This will be a board only event.))

((Feel free to use your imagination, as this is just a guide.))

Note: The older kids from the Shanachie STARS program will help run the games and wrangle the kids. There will also be music and dancing for the grownups.

((I'm sure you all can come up with more than what I have listed here, so use your imaginations! Now, it's your turn to post for your characters - outfits, greetings, conversations, whatever you wish! Just remember to have fun with it and try to behave! ))

Tony and Anya were in attendance at the party, half their time spent mingling with friends, family, and colleagues, and half spent chasing after their three small children. Tony had mixed feelings about the gathering, the last of its kind for the foreseeable future. He never thought there'd come a day when he and Mataya decided to close the theater, but it had become increasingly difficult trying to juggle family and career, and they'd had to make some hard choices. Maybe in a few years when the children were older, they'd change their minds; but for now - and always, really - family came first.


Tony dressed for the party.


Anya's party dress.

While the theater was so very close to her heart, Josie fully understood and supported Mataya, Tony and Anya’s decision to prioritize time with family. There would be many more opportunities in the future for the talented members of the Shanachie theater family. With the exception of her brother, it had been the closest thing to a family Josie had ever known and she was so incredibly grateful for the experience and cherished every single member and performance.

The ballerina was in high spirits as she danced the night away in celebration. She sipped Champagne and shared laughter and stories with her fellow performers and crew members. She brought gifts in tote bags for each of them to take if they chose before departing the theater. Each member had the option of one or both of the t-shirts. For the kids, with their parents permission, there was a snowflake ornament and a Nutcracker cupcake kit nestled within the bag. For the adults of the company who were twenty one and older, there was a bottle of Champagne and colorful glasses to toast to the last season of the theater and to ring in the New Year.

Before departing, Josie made sure to thank Mataya, Tony and Anya for all of their incredibly hard work and dedication to making the theater such a special place in RhyDin and for giving her an opportunities she never dreamed she’d have after her illness. She also made a point of seeking out the theater’s resident Grey Lady to thank her for all of her unwavering support over the years, before she lingered to look at the stage with a soft smile for all of the wonderful memories. The show must go on and it would somewhere. There were still many dances to be had and songs to sing and Josie was all too excited to see what the future might bring.

Doran had been stunned by the news of the Shanachie's indefinite closing, but like Josette he understood the need for family life first. He would miss the camaraderie that the Shanachie companies had developed over the years. Still, it wasn't as if they would never see each other again; despite the city's size, the performing arts community of Rhydin was fairly close. There were other stages--surely there were!--and he fully expected to cross paths with everyone over time. In addition, Doran took a moment at the party to inquire of Jonathan and Kaylee whether he might be able to assist with the teaching of the STARS, particularly with the musical side of it. That would be like coming home, in a way, as he had grown up in the STARS himself.

Eregor and Rhi were there with their children; Lena and Alin were enjoying game after game of Mad Libs while Brian attempted to follow along in charades and little Gale sat in her stroller and stared all around with that awestruck expression that babies master so easily.

Talking with the De Lucas and Jonathan, Eregor expressed his dismay that the Shanachie would be shuttered indefinitely, but also his understanding that family comes first. "Obviously I can get behind that," he added with a gesture to his youngest beside him. "Speaking of family, I have pictures from the holidays, care to see them?" He held up a tablet and began scrolling through image after image of children at play, friends and family laughing together, and the warmth of home. It was a fitting reminder of what was really important in life.

Tony knew that despite the announcement that had gone out to cast and crew members, there would be questions. After all, the theater had become something of a landmark in Rhy'Din, and he knew it must come as something of a shock that it was closing, but all one had to do was look at him and his family to know they were sorely in need of a rest.

They certainly could have hired people to run the theater for them, but it wouldn't be the same; and in the end, they'd decided it was time to take a break. Would they reopen at some point in the future? Maybe, maybe not; but they'd had a good run, and they weren't closing completely. The STARS Program would continue, at least until the school year was over, and there was the Performing Arts School and the Dance Studio. There would be other theaters in Rhy'Din, and hopefully, their students would go on to have successful careers of their own in the future.

As for today, Tony and Anya made sure to personally greet and speak with each and every one of the cast and crew, especially that of the ballet company. They truly cared about their "theater family" and wished only the best for all of them. Small gifts were exchanged, toasts were made, farewells were said. It was a little bittersweet for everyone, but those farewells weren't final. Rhy'Din had become home, and home was where they intended to stay.

Jon wasn't quite as shocked by the theater's closure as some of the other cast and crew. He was, after all, Mataya's "bestie" and knew she'd been struggling for a while to keep up with all the responsibilities that were expected of her. The truth of the matter was that they all were more than a little burned out. He and Vicki had been talking about taking a family vacation for a long time, and now seemed like the best time to do it, before their gaggle of kids got too old for family vacations.

Jon knew as well as anyone in the business that nothing stayed the same forever. He had reinvented himself and his career at least half a dozen times before, and he'd probably do so another half a dozen times before he was through. When asked what he would do now, he said he'd keep himself busy with STARS and had agreed to teach a few classes at the Performing Arts School; but right now, his most important roles in life were that of husband and father.

Over the course of the party, he made sure to mingle with everyone, offer his best wishes, and dispense with any help or advice, if it was asked for. He'd been lucky in both life and career, but it had not come easily or without his fair share of hardship and hard work.

Doran's inquiry about helping with STARS did not fall on deaf ears. He thought it was a fantastic idea, and who better to help than those who had already been through the program. He privately made a mental note to ask Maggie and Rob if they wanted to help, too. He wasn't sure how long they were going to keep STARS going, but the kids seemed to enjoy it, and it was a good introduction to a career in the theater, even if that theater wasn't the Shanachie.

He chuckled as Eregor pulled out his tablet and started scrolling through family photos. He could see the pride and joy on the man's face as he showed them off and understood that feeling well. He looked over to find those children mingling with his own and the others in attendance and realized he had two families. One, of course, was that of blood; the other that of the theater. No matter what happened with the theater, he would always cherish the friendships he had made there and do his best to keep them alive.

How did that old saying go? When one door closes, another opens. Jon had gone through a lot of doors in his life, and in many ways, this was just one more. After all, when one adventure ends, another begins.



Jon & Vicki

Maggie had spent much of her time with the younger children helping them with games and added her own bit of magic to the mix by narrating some fairytales. When Maggie told stories, she gave voices to each character and created special effects. She had considered bringing Sparks along as a magician's assistant. However, not everyone would have been comfortable with the small dragon flitting about!

There was time for dancing including helping Brian to learn to waltz. She was glad the STARS would be continuing despite the theater's closure. It had been a fun learning experience for her. The program limit was 16 and she'd be that age soon enough. While helping to round up the kids for the gifts to be passed out, she realized she didn't have to leave the STARS, not really. Before the night was over, she gave a note to Jonathan to inquire about assisting with the STARS. Her last stop was to visit with Hortense, The Grey Lady, the Shanachie's resident spirit. After clearing it with her aunt and uncle, Alin, Lena, and Brian went along for the little adventure. While Hortense might have enjoyed meeting baby Gale, Maggie already had her hands full!

To say Marissa (or rather, Mira, as she was known these days) was feeling a little out of her element at the holiday party was something of an understatement. She wasn't part of the cast or crew really. She was just an usher and only part-time at that. Maybe there'd been some kind of mistake, but the invitation had clearly had her name on it, and she was pretty sure it hadn't been meant for fhe other Marissa.

A party sounded fun, but she didn't think she'd know anyone, except for a few of her fellow ushers. Besides, they were being let go. Who hosted a party for their employees when they'd just been told they were being let go? It wasn't that Mira needed the money. There was plenty enough of that, and her classes at Rhy'Din U kept her plenty busy. Maybe it was supposed to be sort of a farewell party, too?

She had just about decided to skip it when Marissa had found out; and then her counterpart had not only insisted that Mira attend, but had helped her pick out a dress for the occasion. Mira scowled at the thought of that. She didn't need a mother - or maybe she did - but Marissa wasn't it. She wasn't even her sister, for goddess' sake! She was herself - or some version of herself - from the future. She knew how ridiculous that sounded, but this was Rhy'Din, after all. In the end, she had agreed to go, if only to stop her older counterpart from pestering her about it.

Mira hovered near the entry for at least ten minutes before finally gathering her courage and stepping inside. She couldn't deny the theaters' owners hadn't spared any expense in putting on a good spread. She looked around, searching the crowd for a familiar face or two. There were some people she recognized and even knew by name, but few she knew personally, until she caught sight of one face in particular - that of Maggie Harker. Thankfully, there were a few other faces she recognized, too. Robert Mallory was there with his girlfriend - another Maggie. Marissa had introduced them a while back during a trip to Brambles Orchard. Gory and Rhi were there with their kids, and Maggie's friend Doran was there, too. Mira didn't know him very well, but he seemed nice enough.

At last, she took a deep breath and made her way through the crowd. Maybe this party wouldn't be so awful, after all.

Moving among the company and crew, Raul mingled and shared anecdotes from the past few years' productions. "If--hopefully when--you open the place back up, I'll be among the first to apply back." He gave Mataya and Jonathan a smile. "In the meantime, I'm opening up my own makeup and effects studio, working to promote practical methods as an alternative to more arcane means in this city. After all, not everybody can afford to hire a wizard, but a good makeup kit is much more affordable."